Black History Month 2024 Events Planned On Cape Cod

CAPE COD, MA — Several events are planned on Cape Cod this February to observe Black History Month, which this year celebrates “African Americans and the Arts.”

Black History Month begins Thursday and continues through Leap Day on Feb. 29. Since 1976, every U.S. president has set aside February as a month to celebrate the achievements of African Americans and their role in U.S. history.

African American art is infused with multiple cultural influences, including African, Caribbean and the Black American lived experiences, according to the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, the founder of Black History Month.

These influences are seen in the visual and performing arts, literature, fashion, folklore, language, film, music, architecture, culinary and other forms of cultural expression.

On Cape Cod, the Woods Hole Diversity Advisory Committee has scheduled a slate of talks and events, including:

• "Women in Jazz and Gender Justice" with Drummer/Composer Terri Lyne Carrington, Feb. 9
• "Going To Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project" Woods Hole Film Festival "Dinner & A Movie Series", Feb. 10
• MA Arts Impact: An Executive Director's Perspective with Michael J. Bobbitt, Executive Director of the MA Cultural Council, Feb. 16
• "Before Brooklyn: The Unsung Heroes Who Helped Break Baseball's Color Barrier" a Lecture by Journalist and Author, Ted Reinstein, Feb. 23
• "The Middle" Celebrating the Many Forms Blackness Comes In" Miranda and Krista Lawson, Dancers, Choreographers, & Performers, Feb. 29
• Harambee Community Celebration with Musical Guest Naomi Westwater & Friends, Feb. 29

The Museum of African American History also maintains a Black Heritage Trail, which includes stops at the Seneca Boston-Florence Higginbotham House and African Meeting House. The trail can be found in the brochure here.

A similar trail and tour can be found on Martha's Vineyard with the African-American Heritage Trail. Details can be found here.

Cape Cod Community College will also host a few events this month, including a read-a-long featuring Trevor Noah's memoir "Born a Crime" and a discussion with educator Robin Joyce Miller. More information can be found here.

Related: Black History Month 2024: 5 Things To Know

The first Black History Month observance was held nearly 100 years ago. Called Negro History Week at the time, it was established by Harvard-trained historian Carter G. Woodson, the son of illiterate former slaves, who believed that the important contributions of Black Americans had been largely overlooked in published accounts of U.S. history.

Revered as the “father of Black History Month,” Woodson established the Association for the Study of African American Life and History in 1915 to create a social scientific collection recording and publicizing the accomplishments of Black Americans.